Peace with Justice — Patty Federighi

God Wins: Part 2

We could not see an easy way to consider the sale of the storefront property without dashing the hopes of the tool library. On the other hand, a sale of the property was a better long-term solution for us and the neighboring business. It felt like a no-win situation. As the clerk of our administrative committee, the only leading that rose for me was to initiate a conversation with all of the stakeholders to see if collectively we could create a win/win scenario. So, I scheduled a meeting with the grant donor, representatives from the tool library, and the neighboring business at a time when we could all be in the room together. During our discussion we candidly defined points that could not be negotiated and places where concessions could be made.

The end result was agreement by all parties to enter into a five year lease with the tool library with allowances for the term to end at three years. The purchase price from the local business was increased to allow for a financial contribution to the tool library non-profit at the end of the third and fourth year of the lease. The grant donor had intended that their funds establish the tool library for a minimum of a five-year term. They requested that the amount of compensation be proportional to either two-fifths or one-fifth of the grant, should the full five years of the lease prove impossible to accommodate.

At the end of the meeting every participant commented on how powerful this collective process of truth telling and honoring each stakeholder’s intentions was. They said they had never experienced this kind of cooperative, everybody wins process before.

When presented to the congregation a resounding, “Yes! Approved.” once again filled the room. We all celebrated in gratitude for God’s provision for ALL of us.